Joe Paterno lifted up his new designer glasses, the ones he wears primarily for show now, to prove he doesn’t need them anymore.

“It’s amazing,” said the Penn State coach of his offseason eye surgery. “I can read my notes without any glasses. It says here, ‘Keep your patience with these guys.’”

An upbeat Paterno met with the media before practice today, the fourth of Penn State’s 15 spring sessions, culminating with the April 24 Blue-White Game. As usual, the coach explained away his cheery non-answers as a product of limited information.

“It’s difficult for me to answer some of your questions and know what I’m talking about right now,” Paterno said. Then again, he always says that this time of year.

However, the coach did get into some personnel specifics and allowed media to watch almost 30 minutes of practice. A few notes follow:

This is a young team. There are only 11 players with senior eligibility, and just six of those are returning starters. Overall, however, Penn State returns 13 starters, three more than it returned last season.

Still, with the shortage of seniors, Paterno cautioned that the leadership component will be developed later.

“Right now, we’re not sure about them, and they sense that,” he said. “They know they’re fighting for their lives, mostly to play. They’re not ready to go out and assert themselves as much as I hope we’d be able to get done before it’s over.”

Paterno has no timetable to produce a starting quarterback. About six quarterbacks took snaps today, one of whom was not receiver Brett Brackett. Paterno said after last season that Brackett, who was recruited as a quarterback, might get a look at the position. The fifth-year senior held for the kickers and drilled with the receivers.

Most eyes were focused on sophomore Kevin Newsome, redshirt sophomore Matt McGloin and true freshman Paul Jones, though Paterno said he hasn’t seen much of Jones.

“I’ve probably seen Paul Jones throw the ball eight times in three days,” the coach said. “He’s obviously a good athlete; he can run around and move a lot. But that’s a tough situation when you walk into playing quarterback in the league we’re playing in and having to play some of the teams we play, particularly on the road. You’ve got to play Alabama and Ohio State on the road, probably the No. 1 and No. 2 teams preseason in the country. And then you have to play an Iowa team that plays such great defense, on the road. So you’ve got to be very, very careful as to what you can expect of a kid who just comes in.”

Running back Evan Royster, who returned for his final season of eligibility, won’t do much this preseason as the coaches try to develop a pecking order behind him. With Brandon Beachum (ACL) out for spring, and senior Brent Carter graduating and not using his final year of eligibility, that opens some opportunities for younger backs.

Beyond Stephon Green, Paterno said he liked former walk-on Shaine Thompson (who has been given a scholarship) and walk-on Derek Day. He also praised redshirt freshman Curtis Dukes, a 6-1, 238-pound running back. “He’s got a chance,” Paterno said.

Receiver Chaz Powell is practicing with the defensive backs this spring.

Several players will join Beachum on the sidelines this spring. Safety Drew Astorino is recovering from shoulder surgery, and linebacker Mike Mauti is protecting his knee following ACL surgery last year. Mauti was in uniform, wearing a cross designating no contact, but going through drills.

Defensive tackle Tom McEowen is graduating and will not use his final year of eligiblity.

The team currently is without a listed punter, since redshirt junior Ryan Breen left the team this offseason. Taking punts today were kickers Anthony Fera and Russell Nye. Receiver Graham Zug even took a few punts.

Former longtime assistant coach Fran Ganter will be inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame’s Western Chapter, Penn State announced this afternoon.

Ganter has been a part of the Penn State football family since 1967 as a player, coach and administrator. The suburban Pittsburgh (Bethel Park) native will be inducted on May 1 at the Sheraton Four Points Hotel in Warrendale.

He is among 12 inductees that also include Art Rooney Jr., vice president of the Pittsburgh Steelers; Doug Plank, who played with the Chicago Bears; and George Novak, head football coach at Woodland Hills High School.

At left is a photo of Ganter, next to Joe Paterno, during a 1999 game at Illinois.

A former offensive coordinator, Ganter has been Penn State’s associate athletic director for football administration since 2004 and oversees a variety of administrative facets of the program. Some might say Ganter was pushed upstairs after a fourth losing season in five years, for which the Nittany Lion offense was blamed for much of the downturn.

A standout at Bethel Park High School, Ganter was a running back for Penn State from 1967-70. He graduated in 1971 and was Penn State’s freshman coach that fall, beginning a tenure that would last 33 years on the coaching staff.

Ganter was named a graduate assistant coach in 1972, earning his master’s degree in education that same year, and served as junior varsity coach for several years before being named running backs and kickers coach in 1978. Ganter was named offensive coordinator in 1984, and in 2000 he was named assistant head coach.

According to Penn State:

Among the many prolific offenses that Ganter directed, the 1994 Nittany Lions rank among the best in college football history. Penn State led the nation in total offense (520.2 ypg) and scoring with their 47.8 ppg average, still ranking as the ninth-highest scoring average in NCAA history. The unit broke 14 team school records, led the Big Ten in every offensive category and shattered the record for scoring in Big Ten games with a 48.1 ppg average, a mark that remains.

Ganter has four sons – Jonathan, Christopher, Jason and Ben – all of whom played college football. Jonathan played football at Princeton, Chris played at Penn State from 2001-04, Jason played for the Nittany Lions from 2003-07 and Ben was a senior quarterback at Cornell last fall.

Every year, at least a couple players are tried at different positions, and it appears that Chaz Powell (below) could be on the move – at least in spring ball.

A reader wrote to say that Powell could return to the secondary, where he has some experience. We speculated in January that the emergence of Curtis Drake at the slot could cost Powell a lot of time on the field, so you never know.

In the fall, Powell will have junior eligibility, while Drake – as well as slot Devon Smith – will be true sophomores.

It also will be interesting to see if sophomore-to-be Gerald Hodges ends up at safety or linebacker.

Update from Mark Wogenrich: Wide receiver Brett Brackett has moved to quarterback, at least for now. Could be Penn State wants to have Brackett, who was a 3-star QB recruit out of high school, as a fail-safe in case the young quarterbacks (Kevin Newsome, Paul Jones and Robert Bolden -- and even walk-on Matt McGloin) falter. All but Bolden will be participating in spring practice.

Penn State’s spring practice concludes with the annual Blue-White intrasquad game on Saturday, April 24, at Beaver Stadium.

Two stars on Penn State’s 1986 national championship team are among the candidates under consideration for the National Football Foundation’s College Hall of Fame, the university announced this afternoon.

All-Americans D.J. Dozier and Steve Wisniewski have been selected for the national ballot for the Hall of Fame's Class of 2010. They have an opportunity to join 17 former Nittany Lion players and five Penn State coaches who have been inducted into the Hall, including Joe Paterno, a 2007 inductee.

There are 77 players and seven coaches on the new ballot. For a look at the ballot, click hereand scroll toward the bottom.

Curt Warner, Penn State’s career rushing leader, was inducted into the Hall last December and will be formally enshrined in the Hall of Fame during ceremonies on July 16-17 in South Bend, Ind., the home of the College Football Hall of Fame. The hall is moving to a new facility in Atlanta in 2012.

A tailback, Dozier is the only Nittany Lion to lead the team in rushing four consecutive seasons, doing so from 1983-86. He ranks fifth on the school career rushing yardage list with 3,227 yards. He scored the winning TD on a six-yard run in the fourth quarter of Penn State’s 14-10 victory over Miami in the January 1987 Fiesta Bowl.

Wisniewski was a three-year starter at offensive guard for Penn State and later became an All-Pro lineman in the NFL. He started on the 1986 national title team and was a first-team All-American in 1987-88. A 1988 team captain, he is one of just two offensive lineman to earn Penn State team MVP honors since the award was created in 1978.

Wisniewski’s nephew, Stefen Wisniewski, will be a senior for Penn State this fall, his third year as a starter on the offensive line.

To be eligible for the Hall of Fame ballot, players must have been named a first-team All-America by a major/national selector as recognized and utilized by the NCAA for its consensus All-America teams; played their last year of intercollegiate football at least 10 years prior to nomination; played within the last 50 years and cannot be currently playing professional football.

Once nominated for consideration, all player candidates are submitted to one of eight district screening committees, which conducts a vote to determine who will appear on the ballot and represent their respective districts.

Former punter Jeremy Boone knows he doesn’t pass the “eye test,” which is why he has begun learning to hold and kick field goals as a backup plan.

“There are other punters in this [draft] class who are 6-2 or even taller, and teams like that,” the 5-9 Boone said at Penn State’s Pro Day. “There’s nothing I can do about that. All I can continue to do is work on my directional punting and hope for a chance.”

Boone was among the 22 players who participated in Pro Day at Holuba Hall. Around 2:15 p.m., after everyone else had run and lifted, Boone got about 10 minutes to audition for the assembled scouts.

It will be a difficult road even to free agency, and Boone knows that. Punting jobs are scarce, and this year's class of potential draft picks or free agents include punters who are 6-1 or taller.

“Size is the biggest thing,” he said. “I know I don’t pass the eye test.”

To compensate, Boone has been working on improving the things he can control. He spent Wednesday's Pro Day session demonstrating his directional-punting ability. He also has worked with former Penn State kicker Kevin Kelly to learn placekicking, hoping teams might take a chance on a kicker with varied skills.

“I could kick off the block, but I had a hard time kicking off the ground,” he said. “You never know.”

If the NFL doesn’t work, Boone will pursue a career in elementary education. He already has done some student teaching.

“It’s great to have a fallback plan being something I really look forward to doing,” he said.

In case you missed it, we had a little online piece about high school marching bands being added to the festivities for the Blue-White Game on April 24.

Here is essentially what I wrote:

Six high school marching bands -- including the Easton Area High School band -- have been named to march during a parade on the Penn State campus and during the university's annual Blue-White spring intrasquad football on Saturday, April 24, at Beaver Stadium, Penn State announced tonight.

If the weather is nice, the game should draw 70,000 to 80,000 people, as it has in recent years. This year's game will be televised live on ESPN2.

Easton High and bands from Gettysburg, Altoona, Philipsburg-Osceola, Pemberton Township (N.J.) and Ballou (Washington, D.C.) high schools have committed to perform.

The bands will parade through East campus to Beaver Stadium the morning of the game. The bands will be seated in the north end zone at Beaver Stadium and will entertain fans pre-game, halftime and in-game along with the Penn State Blue Band.

There is no admission fee to the game, and parking is free.

Penn State held a popular high school band day during the season annually from 1950-74 and at several Blue-White Games in the 1980s.

Penn State’s annual spring football game was expanded several years ago into Blue-White Weekend by adding a two-day carnival and a festival area with food, entertainment, interactive games, and a wing fest. Fans park and enjoy the game free of charge and partake in activities, including fireworks, that surround the stadium for the weekend, starting at 6 p.m. on Friday, April 23. Stadium gates will open at noon on Saturday for the popular player autograph session on the field preceding the game.

Penn State held its annual Pro Day at Holuba Hall today. A total of 22 former players, some stretching back to 2007-08, worked out for representatives of all 32 NFL teams. Among them was former quarterback Anthony Morelli, who agreed on a release from the newly restarted Arena Football League to give the NFL another shot. “There’s no quit in me,” Morelli said. “I’m going to keep going until I exhaust all my options.” A few notes from the day:

40-YARD DASH TIMES

It should be noted that these are self-reported by the players, and Holuba Hall’s track is considered fast. Gil Brandt, an analyst for NFL.com, said a few years ago that scouts take these times with a grain of salt. That said, Penn State’s combine performers all improved the times they ran in Indianapolis – those who ran, at least. Quarterback Daryll Clark did not run at the combine because of a hamstring injury. Quarterback Daryll Clark: 4.61 Linebacker Sean Lee: “Mid 4.5s to low 4.6s.” Combine time: 4.72. Linebacker Navorro Bowman: 4.61. Combine time: 4.72. Defensive tackle Jared Odrick: 4.90. Combine time: 5.03. Tight end Andrew Quarless: “4.5 and change.” Combine time: 4.68. Offensive lineman Dennis Landolt: 5.0. Offensive lineman Ako Poti: 5.4 Cornerback Knowledge Timmons: 4.39. Cornerback A.J. Wallace: 4.45.

INTERVIEWS AND WORKOUTS

Lee has personal workouts scheduled with Atlanta, Dallas, Indianapolis and the New York Giants. He also will interview with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Bowman is visiting Pittsburgh and Dallas. Odrick said he had several visits scheduled but did not name the teams.

‘FINGERS CROSSED’

Clark said he was pleased with his 40 time and how he threw in the drills, hitting all but one pass. He has no visits scheduled and has heard a variety of draft possibilities, from fifth round to free agent. He also said no team has asked about him playing another position. “He’ll be a quarterback,” said his agent, former Penn State receiver Chafie Fields.

OFF TO CALIFORNIA

Odrick leaves tonight for Burbank, Calif., where he will shoot a segment Thursday of ESPN’s “Sport Science” feature. “I don’t know what they’re going to do, actually,” he said. “Hook me up to something, measure something. Should be fun.” Odrick also said that teams have projected him at all the interior positions on the defensive line, including end in a 3-4 alignment.

THE QUESTIONS

Bowman said NFL teams have broken down his personal history, while Lee has been quizzed about his health. “Regarding the off-the-field issues, I was going through some things and hard times,” said Bowman, who has signed with agent Drew Rosenhaus. “We all as men have to mature and learn from the mistakes you make. You can see I’m different. I don’t do some of the things I used to do. I work a lot harder and focus more. I had a chance to sit down and put things in perspective.” Lee, who had two knee injuries in the past three years, said, “Each time I work out I prove I’m healthy and 100 percent. But I’m sure there are questions about it. .. It’s a big concern, and it should be. I haven’t been healthy the last two years, but now I’m training a bit differently, kind of gearing more toward my weaknesses in my body. I think I’ve made some big strides.”

Members of Penn State's Nittany Lion Club will be able to buy tickets beginning Monday for the Penn State-Indiana football game in November at FedEx Field near Washington, D.C. The Nov. 20 game originally was scheduled to be played at Indiana.

Tickets are $60-$150 in the 91,704-seat stadium in Landover, Md. The ticket price includes parking.

The general public will be able to purchase tickets for the game two weeks later starting on March 29, if tickets are still available.

According to Penn State: Nittany Lion Club members will have the opportunity to buy tickets based on priority points. Different minimum point total levels have been established for each weekday from March 15-26. The cumulative point total for the 2009 membership year will be used for determining the respective sale date.

This Monday's sale begins at 10 a.m. only for Nittany Lion Club members with at least 650 points. Ticket orders for the game can be made at this Penn State Web siteor by calling 814-865-5555 weekdays from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

For other club members, the purchase dates are: March 16, 350-649; March 17, 250-349; March 18, 200-249; March 19, 160-199; March 22, 130-159; March 23, 100-129; March 24, 70-99; March 25, 35-69; March 26, 1-34.

If, after all that, tickets remain available, the general public can start buying them at 10 a.m. on Monday, March 29, via the Web site or phone number listed above. Nittany Lion Club members also can still buy tickets, as long as ducats remain available.

Penn State will be playing in the metropolitan Washington, D.C. area for the first time since 1993, when the Nittany Lions whipped Maryland, 70-7.

Penn State's annual Blue-White intrasquad game will be televised live this year by ESPN2. Kickoff is 2 p.m. Saturday, April 24.

The Blue-White game will be the first spring game ESPN has televised live among Big Ten schools. An estimated 76,500 people attended last year's game at Beaver Stadium, which marks the end of spring drills.

Admisson and parking for the Blue-White game are free. And there will be a carnival outside the stadium the day of the game and the evening beforehand.

Here's more on the Schutt name appearing on some Penn State football helmets. This info is courtesy of Glenn Beckmann of Schutt Sports Inc.:

"I thought I would elaborate a bit on Tim¹s [Darragh's] story ... on Schutt Recon.

"In actuality, Penn State began using our helmets exclusively about six years ago (pre-dating my time with the company). If I understand correctly, the Lions were intrigued by the new helmet (the DNA Pro) we introduced in 2003.

"The DNA Pro was the first helmet to move beyond traditional foam padding; it adapted a military technology (thermoplastic urethane cushioning) to football helmets and testing showed that it performed significantly better than foam padding: better impact absorption, better heat management and better hygienics.

"Penn State took the helmet and, unwilling to rely solely on our sales pitch, gave them to their own internal departments to determine if what we were saying was true. After reviewing the data from their own internal teams, they agreed with our assessment and made the decision to go exclusively to Schutt helmets. And they have been ever since (even though the team is now wearing a combination of the DNA Pro and our newest helmet, the ION 4D (both helmets feature the 3rd generation of the TPU cushioning).

"But our brand did not begin appearing on the back of the helmets until two years ago, when we reached a branding agreement with Penn State, which showcases our brand on-field for all Lion helmets."

The contributions of Joe Paterno will be recognized annually by the Maxwell Football Club of Philadelphia, which today announced the creation of the Joseph V. Paterno Award that will go to a college football coach, Penn State said this afternoon.

The announcement was made by the Maxwell Club hours before of its 73rd Annual Awards Banquet in Atlantic City, N.J. The Maxwell Club presents 13 high school, college and professional football awards each year at its black-tie dinner.

“I’m deeply honored,” Paterno said. “The Maxwell Club is one of the great organizations nationally for college football and all levels of the game. They have contributed tremendously to our game by recognizing many of the people who have made an impact in football. The Maxwell Club has been a real asset for many years in promoting the game of football in greater Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania.”The specific criteria for the Paterno Award are in the development stage. The recipient will be a college football coach, with the selection criteria including the impact the coach has had on his university, student-athletes in the program, community and state. The recipient will be chosen by a selection committee to be determined by the Maxwell Club.Paterno is a previous recipient of two of the Maxwell Club’s awards. JoePa won the George Munger Award, presented to the college football coach of the year, in 1990, 1994 and 2005. Paterno was presented the Reds Bagnell Award for contributions to the game of football in 1999.

A judge has dropped two former prosecutors from the federal civil lawsuit filed by former Penn State running back Austin Scott after he was dimissed from the team in 2007, according to the Centre Daily Times.

Scott's lawsuit says his chances of a professional football career were destroyed after he was charged with rape in 2007. The judge ruled that the two prosecutors had absolute immunity to decide whether or not to prosecute, according to the Centre Daily Times.

Remaining defendants in the lawsuit by Scott, a Parkland High School graduate, are the university itself, three Penn State police officers, two detectives, a police chief and assistant chief, in addition to Scott's accuser, Desiree Minder.

Ryan Breen, projected to be Penn State’s starting punter this fall, has left the team, according to fightonstate.com, which also says it is unclear if he will return.

Breen, of Michigan, would be a junior in the fall. He was a 2-star recruit (Class of 2007) and was being groomed to take over for the dependable Jeremy Boone.

Who’s left? Placekickers Collin Wagner, David Soldner and Anthony Fera could give punting a whirl. Plus, fightonstate.com is reporting that former Temple punter Russell Nye is on the spring Nittany Lion roster. Nye is from State College, and his dad Greg Nye is the Penn State men’s golf coach.

Penn State defensive tackle Jared Odrick met the media at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis over the weekend, and he talked about his strong performance at the Senior Bowl as well as the opportunity to compete at the Combine

For video of his interview, click here.The first question is about how he fared at the Senior Bowl.